Perfect Option for Young Patient

Special to 318 Forum

JaMarcus Stephens of Springhill arrived at Willis Knighton Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Bossier to see Dr. Vik Chatrath. An active 21-year-old, Stephens believed his knee pain was caused by a basketball injury. What the young man didn’t realize at the time was that he was about to become a unique patient, the first at Willis Knighton to receive a very special BioUni knee surgery.

During the evaluation, Dr. Chatrath identified a significant defect in the Stephens’ knee — so large that if he had been 60 or older, the doctor would have recommended a knee replacement surgery. “While that’s good for an older patient, it could be devastating for such a young man,” Dr. Chatrath said.

Instead of joint replacement, Dr. Chatrath recommended a procedure called a BioUni knee. The BioUni knee implant utilizes biologic materials rather than the standard metal or plastic joints typically used in knee replacements, which are often performed on older patients. Dr. Chatrath ordered donor cadaver tissue, which he used in surgery, mixing it with platelet-rich plasma from the patient to enhance the natural growth of the implant.

Surgeon shapes tissue to conform the shape of hole in the knee.

A CT scan of the patient’s knee was performed to obtain accurate measurements, enabling the donor cadaver graft material to be precisely sized in 3D to fill the hole in the knee. The successful surgery at Willis Knighton Bossier was the first of its kind to be performed at Willis Knighton Health.

The results? Stephens immediately regained a full range of motion in his knee, but he is required to wait six to eight weeks for it to heal before he can put full weight on it.

Dr. Chatrath emphasized the importance of selecting the right procedure for each patient. While some patients do require joint replacement, he is also able to recommend joint preservation as well.

“Incorporating natural tissue was the best possible option for JaMarcus, who can now enjoy a full and active life,” Dr. Chatrath said.

Dr. Vik Chatrath is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and a member of the Willis Knighton Physician Network, as well as a partner at Willis Knighton Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Bossier